MQM-P takes to the streets to protest against Musharraf verdict

We are not forgetful of the services he has offered to Pakistan, says Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui

KARACHI: We have always appreciated the courts of Pakistan, but we fear that the public is losing its trust in the courts and the judicial system, Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) convener Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqi said on Sunday.

He was addressing a rally staged here to protest against the special court verdict, sentencing to death former president Pervez Musharraf in a high treason case.

The MQM-P leadership expressed solidarity with the former president at Liaquatabad Flyover on Sunday, with protesters, including women and children, beginning to gather at the spot at 2pm. Holding up placards, participants shouted slogans demanding justice for General Musharraf.

"Today, the people of Karachi are out on the streets again," said Siddiqi, claiming that the number of participants showed that the writing was on the wall. "The court issued such a verdict and used such language that is extra-judicial and against Sharia - the verdict has not just disrespected a person but the entire nation, and we have the right to object to it and appeal against it."

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Mentioning that Pakistan was established after two million people sacrificed their lives, Siddiqi said that Musharraf too had encountered danger and risked his life to serve the army and the country for 40 years. "We are not forgetful of the services Musharraf has offered to Pakistan," he maintained, declaring the verdict “controversial”.

Adding that Musharraf had boosted the economy and liberated the media, Siddiqi pointed out that despite being a dictator, the economy had been better in his regime than in any of the democratic regimes of the country.

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"The people of Karachi, belonging to traders associations, social organisations and different ethnicities, have shown unity by gathering in support of Musharraf," said MQM-P senior deputy convener Amir Khan, adding that the protest had proven the party to be organised, firm and a major political force when faced with justice.

Expressing his belief that they would get justice from the courts, he said, "We expect that the courts give justice to Pervez Musharraf, who made India tremble during the Kargil War”. He added that calling such a general a traitor reflected "a shameful and vengeful mind-set”.

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Meanwhile, Karachi mayor Waseem Akhtar said that the confidence of the demonstrators showed that the public had made its decision. "We too are against the violation of law, but Article 6 should be used correctly," he said. "The violator should not be the only one punished; rather, everyone involved in the violation should be tried."

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MQM-P leader Faisal Sabzwari also said that the courts should reconsider the verdict given by the special court. "The comment regarding the hanging of the body at D-Chowk smells of discrimination," he claimed, adding that verdicts given in the past should also be considered in Musharraf's case.

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He went on to question the state of democracy in Sindh, saying that even Garhi Khuda Bakhsh and Larkana, strongholds of the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party, were in terrible condition. He claimed that the plundering of Sindh had not stopped in 12 years.